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Tuesday, October 4, 2011

FCC’s first wave crackdown against signal jammers

The Federal Communication Commission is making good on its warning to signal jammer vendors on Friday Sept. 30, issuing a sweeping citation to 20 of them.

Earlier this year, the FCC issued a warning to consumers and vendors of the illegal nature of jamming devices, and warned would-be violators of the consequences that may come if selling or using such devices.

The vendors listed in the citation order are all online vendors that offer a range of illegal jammers such as GPS blockers for vehicles, high-tech signal blockers with remote control capabilities, jammers disguised as paintings and cigarette packs, other small, easily-concealable cell phone jammers, as well as high powered industrial jammers that have the potential to disrupt radio signals in areas as large as a football field.

The citation requires that the online vendors report within 30 days on their specific actions taken to correct the violation. The citation also warns that continued violation may bring fines, equipment seizure or imprisonment.